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Pre-Exodus Timeline
While the history of New Commonwealth is well documented, many records from before the Exodus have been lost. As such, Historical Society of Ortus scours the planet for every scrap of historically-relevant information - which resulted in creation of simplified timeline of Old Commonwealth from the time when Humanity still lived alone on Blue Earth. 17th Century 1695 - Last years of King Jan III Sobieski's rule bring concern to Poland-Lithuania. The king - hero of Battle of Vienna and saviour of Europe - was known to be a strong and wise monarch. However, his potential successors were not even remotely as competent as Sobieski, which leads to growing concern both among the nobility and lower classes, who are unsure about the future of their divided and poorly managed country. This sentiment leads to creation of National Assembly - a group of disgruntled nobles, merchants and soldiers who start plotting the downfall of faulty elective monarchy. 1697 - Saxon Elector Duke, August II von Wettin is placed on Polish-Lithuanian throne, despite losing elections in the Sejm - supported by powerful army of Tsardom of Russia. His rule quickly turns into a series of poor decision and incompetent management, with new king focused mostly on hunting and siring many bastards. As a result, National Assembly gains more and more popular support at an overwhelming rate, even securing support from other nations. 18th Century 1701 - Polish-Lithuanian revolution begins, aimed at overthrowing broken elective monarchy and dislodging powerful nobles from positions of power. Formal hostilities last only for few months, culminated during Battle of Rzymski road, during which rebel forces under Lew Prazmowski defeat royalist army under well-respected and talented general Kazimierz Potocki. After securing victory in the field, revolutionary forces march on Warsaw but fail to capture August von Wettin, but without the king and his army, elective monarchy in Poland-Lithuania falls apart. The National Assembly takes power and reshapes the country into Commonwealth, a republic where every citizen, not just entrenched nobles have a right to vote. 1702-1716 - Rise of the Commonwealth. A series of various events - wars, pacts and inventions - that transformed Commonwealth from a poor republic besieged on all sides into a global military and industrial superpower. During that time Commonwealth managed to expand its borders, amass countless amounts of funds and resources, secure diplomatic relations with many Asian nations (most notably Mughal and Ottoman empires) and - finally - become a home to industrial and technological revolution. The war in Europe is not finished, however - while Commonwealth secures peace, Mughal armies land en-masse on the shores of Great Britain, swarming towards London. 1721 - American Revolution - with British forces stretched to the limit, most of them are forced to retreat back to the Islands to defend their home territory against Mughal invasion. Sensing a perfect opportunity, British colonial territories in Americas break away from the crown. Most Northern territories succeed, however Caribbean Islands, as well as South-American colonies remain in British hands, although the Crown must offer some concessions. 1723 - Invasion of Britain Ends - after 7 years of bloody confict in the countryside, Mughal armies are pushed back from Great Britain. United Kingdom survived, but only barely, led by Queen Victoria I - who would start a new dynasty of rulers who would all bear her name. Despite surviving Mughal invasion, the victory was Pyrrhic at best - British Islands were ruined and suffered from massive depopulation, especially in southwester regions. Officially, the war ended in white peace. 1731-1737 - American Punitive Expedition. After few years of rebuliding British Isles, Queen Victoria I launches an offensive aimed at retaking North American Colonies. Despite some early successes, rebel forces were unable to sustain themselves against determined army of bloodied British veterans of war against Mughals. The war ended on 11th of March 1737 after Battle of Boston, where last remnants of colonial forces were wiped out to the last man. After the battle Victoria I ordered execution of all revolutionary ringleaders and re-estabilished British dominance on the continent. 1745 - Anton Daniłowicz - former treasurer of the Commonwealth - resurfaces in Empire of China, where his reforms bring Celestial Empire out of isolationism and into the global scene. China and Commonwealth estabilish mutual embassies and proclaim a pact of Eternal Friendship - aimed mostly against British Empire and its colonial ambitions. 1746-1747 - French Revolution - After being conquered by United Provinces in 1703, France remained under Dutch influence for over 4 decades, during which remnants of Bourbon dynasty desperately tried to regain power. Eventually, people of France rose against Dutch occupation in December 1746, but swift intervention of Netherlander armies - led by one General Vos - brought that revolution to an end in June 1747. France would not try and rise ever again. 1768 - Eastern Union - at amazing age of 102, first Prime Minister of the Commonwealth - Rościsław Ćwinowski - proclaimed formation of Easter Union, also known as Eastern Commonwealth. Originally a military alliance aimed at British Empire, the union of Commonwealth, Ottoman, Mughal and Chinese Empires transformed into a continent-wide political and economic pact that would dominate Eurasia until the Exodus. By 2019, Eastern Commonwealth would encompass territory from Rhine river in the west to Japan in the east. 1770 - Aware of extreme power that Eastern Union now wielded, British Empire approached it with a diplomatic proposal - Britain would revoke all its colonial claims in the east, while Union would leave Americas to United Kingdom. Both sides agree to the proposal and lapse into a period of relative peace - however, both superpowers instantly begin a scramble for Africa, desperate to carve as much land as possible for themselves. Britain quickly gains the upper hand in this race, thanks to their earlier conquests in North Africa. 1776 - Madagascar Incident - colonists from Eastern Commonwealth and British Empire clash on the island of Madagascar. Another war is barely avoided, but both superpowers cut almost all diplomatic contacts. Dutch United Provinces emerge as mediators and a buffer zone between two giants, reaping massive benefits by facilitating trade between them. 1781 - Dutch colonists estabilish several permanent settlements on the coast of Australia, officially claiming the continent for United Provinces. 19th Century 1801-1812 - Italian Campaign - after fall of Spain in 1707, Italy collapsed into a myriad of small countries and citystates constantly at odds with each other. Sensing an opportunity to expand their influence on mainland Europe, Great Britain - under Victoria II - launches a military campaign with a sole objective of capturing Italian Peninsula. The war becomes a series of smaller battles and chaotic campaigns, with many Italian states changing sides and backstabbing each other in hopes of attaining more power, despite encroaching British forces. Eventually, the war boils down to a battle between British forces and Kingdom of Naples - however, due to political backstabbing, decisive battle took place even before invaders arrived on the field. For 3 days before battle, Neapolitianian army fought against itself 3 days as new commanders tried to take control of entire force. By the time British lines arrived, army of Naples lost over 60% of its original number and surrendered without firing a shot, leading to full annexation of Italian peninsula. 1813-1815 - After year-long negotiations, Papacy is exiled from Rome by British crown in October 1813. The Pope tries to seek refuge in the Commonwealth but is refused entry due to support Papal States gave to Britain almost a century ago. After nearly 2 years of constant travels, Papacy is finally re-estabilished in christianized Kingdom of Congo. 1821-1825 - Chad War - desperate to carve as much Africa for themselves as possible, Commonwealth and British colonial forces clash in a series of skirmishes around Lake Chad. What began as a handful of raids and minor border disputes grew into a full-blown war, with both sides deploying almost 1 million soldiers into the area - most of which would be lost to elements, heat and starvation, as supplying armies in such a remote corner of the world was extremely difficult. The war ended, technically, in Commonwealth victory, as they managed to secure area around Lake Chad, but during that time Britain managed to estabilish almost complete dominance over central Africa excluding Kingdom of Congo. 1836-1842 - Congo War - with entire southern Africa under their control, Britain launches an offensive to annex last independed African state - the Kingdom of Congo. Commonwealth intervenes, dragging two giants into yet another conflict, once more fought completely on African soil. This time, however, new tactics and weapons are used (including breech-loaded and repeater rifles) which, when paired with extremely harsh conditions in Congo, leads to almost 3 million military casualties. Population of Congo is reduced by 80%. In the end, Great Britain pushes Commonwealth forces out of the Kingdom and annexes it, which leads to first Great Embargo - no nation belonging to the Eastern Union (which, at the time, meant Eastern Europe and almost entire Asia) can trade with Great Britain, nor they can do it indirectly through Dutch territory. 1851 - Ignacy Niewiadomski, student of Gardinas University begins experimenting with electricity. 1854 - Fiodor Antonowicz Dunin develops first lightbulb. Electrification of the Commonwealth begins. 1855 - Sir Jonathan Dursley, Count of Dorset, develops first rapid-firing machinegun. The design was stolen by Commonwealth agents mere two weeks after it was presented to Imperial Army officials. 1857-1860 - Great Trade War - after almost 20 years of Great Embargo, smuggling runs rampant between Commonwealth and Britain. Both sides blame each other for economic losses and launch a full-scale naval campaigns to deal with smugglers - but, in the end, both navies mostly fight each other. It was the first war where both sides used only steam-powered ships, with Commonwealth deploying their very first Ironclad - which exploded before reaching combat zone due to a construction fault. The war ended inconclusively - the smugglers were mostly eliminated, but both sides lost great number of ships for very little gain. The war also featured greatest naval engagement ever fought on Earth, with nearly 200 warships present in the combat area. The Embargo was lifted. 1871 - Second American Revolution - ended before it truly began. Empress Victoria IV, aware of growing resentment of her rule, placed numerous agents in rebel cells. On 25th of Aprli, 1871, the rebels were ready to strike but their leaders were all assassinated by royalist agents during the night. Afterwards, British colonial forces re-estabilished order within weeks - the only battle fought during that time was in Quebec, where revolutionaries (at least according to Imperial reports) failed to wound or kill even a single redcoat soldier. 1872-1899 - The Age of Progress - after fighting in several inconclusive wars, both Eastern Commonwealth and British empire turn their attention inward and focus on scientific advances. Electrification reaches Siberia, Congo and deepest depths of Amazonian jungles. Combustion engine takes the world by storm. Medical discoveries are made weekly, and first successful operation on an open heart is concluded in 1891. In May, 1899, two British inventors develop a machine that can be used to fly at breathtaking speeds, and their project is immidiately adopted by Imperial Army. 20th Century 1900-1903 - Second Embargo - originally, the issue began with a patent for a high-efficiency combustion engine, as both developers from Commonwealth and Britain claimed to have developed it. Negotiations got out of hand and both nations once again closed their markets to each other. However, due to modern economy, embargo only lasted for 3 years, as both sides realized that they were not able to sustain themselves without trade. 1907-1937 - The Great War (also known as Three Decades of Death) - the war began with the so-called Cairo Incident, where Ottoman President was assassinated by (supposedly) religious fanatics. However, investigation revealed that perpetrators were hired by British government in order to create chaos within Ottoman territory - which they could use to push their forces into Ottoman-held Egypt. In response, Commonwealth denounced Britain and launched a punitive naval strike on the North Sea, which very quickly spiraled into a total war between two superpowers. Unlike previous confict, however, it was not fought only in Africa, but on all other continents (excluding Australia). The most deadly front appeared in 1910, when Great Britain launched a full-scale amphibious invasion of Northern Germany and - using their air superiority - managed to push Commonwealth forces to the Oder river. However, Union forces used that time to bridge technological gap and soon a deadly back-and-forth began in northern Germany, with Berlin changing hands over a hundred times during the war. Several attempts were made to end the war, but with casualty reports on an unprecedented scale, goodwill was in short supply. The slaughter would continue for three decades with various levels of intensity, but - in the end - over 250 million people all across the world died as a result of this war. When its end finally arrived, it was not from any desire for peace, but out of fear of mutual destruction. On 11th of February, 1937, a massive explosion turned Commonwealth's capital city of Warsaw into dust. However, mere two hours later, very similar explosion burned London away from the face of the world as well. Both sides realized that, unwittingly, they created similar weapons of mass-destruction - nuclear bombs, which could wipe out life on entire Earth if used without control. Worse still, they also had the exact same idea of smuggling said bombs into capital cities of their enemies. Terrified at a prospect of global extincion, Commonwealth and Britain signed a peace treaty, with both sides agreeing to some concessions. Easterners would fully withdraw from Africa, and Commonwealth would hand over those Caribbean Islands it still held. In return, Britain agreed to hand over control of Italy to Commonwealth and Spain to United Provinces, effectively removing their presence from continental Europe. The peace was signed and both sides turned to isolationism in order to lick their wounds. 1944 - Chinese experiments with rocket and jet engines create first (and unplanned) artificial satelite of Earth, as their experimental ballistic missile Guan Yu-3 ends up breaking all records and finishes its journey on Earth's orbit. 1946 - Indian Republic launches first (planned) artificial satelite of Earth, but loses contact with it mere week after reaching orbit. 1949 - British Empire creates first man-made machine that can breach the speed of sound. 1956 - Imperial Duchy of Argentina launches first human into space. 1961 - Commonwealth researchers from University of Kraków create first circuit-based computer. 1962 - First successful heart transplant performed in Mari Communal Hospital in Tokyo. 1968 - University of Kraków becomes the first facility in the world with computers connected into a single network. 1969 - Great Britain lands on the Moon - Sir Garett Moresby and Sir Maxwell Wilson become the very first humans to set foot on another stellar body. 1971 - Eager to upstage British moon-landing, Commonwealth launches unmanned missions to Mars, Venus and Jupiter. First two succeed, third one fail as the probe is destroyed after colliding with a small asteroid. 1976 - In the greatest space-borne operation in history, Empress Victoria VII lands on the Moon and claims it for the British Empire. Commonwealth and the rest of Eastern Union denounce the act and redouble their efforts to send their people to other worlds. 1984 - Eastern Union officially becomes Eastern Commonwealth - a single nation without borders, becoming the greatest and most populous country in the world. 1987-1989 - manned British and Commonwealth missions are sent to Mars, but only one of the reaches its destination. Sir Garret Moresby becomes the first human to stand on two different planets within his lifetime. Commonwealth mission reaches Mars but the lander crashes into the surface at terminal velocity, killing the crew inside. 1994 - Eastern Commonwealth becomes fully networked. First experiments with wireless network end up in overwhelming success. 2000 - United Provinces, using near-limitless resources of Australian mainland, construct first floating city on the Pacific. It becomes a major tourist destination within days of official opening, earning Provinces immense amounts of money. 21st Century 2001-2007 - Commonwealth and Great Britain launch first joint space mission to create an orbital research station. The Unity Station becomes operational in February 2007, just in time to witness launch of Commonwealth Iskra Multistage Rocket - with three people on board, ready for 4-year-long journey to Titan. 2011 - on 1st of June, Iskra Multistage Rocket lands on the surface of Titan. Its three inhabitants - Dariusz Wachowski, Rakesh Sharma and Chen Yao - end up farther than any other human would ever travel within the Solar System. After 2 days of gathering data and making thousands of photograpsh, the crew launch for home - unfortunately, astronaut Sharma would not survive the long journey back. 2013 - Commonwealth launches several dozen rockets to the Moon, with hopes of using robots to create a small but permanent research outpost. 2015 - Iskra Rocket lands back on Earth, its two remaining passengers exhausted and nearly broken but happy to be back. Their prolonged exposure to microgravity becomes a basis for thousands of new plans on how to improve Humanity's chances in space. 2016 - A pseudo-documentary series on the history of Commonwealth airs on the global network and is welcomed with overwhelming negativity due to its overal awfulness. Sources across the world claim that it may be the reason why both governments of Britain and Eastern Commonwealth started to push for increased net censorship during that year. 2017 - United Provinces present their very first underwater city off the coast of Australia. Dutch government claims that, by the end of 2030, they will be able to begin full colonization of oceanic depths across the world and access untold amounts of resources there. 2018 - Researchers on the Unity Station confirm existence of gravitational waves, greatly increasing Humanity's understanding of the Universe 2019 - 27th of May - Halicarnassus Observatory in Andes reports a massive stellar object on a direct collision course with Earth. Exodus begins. Category:Historical Events Category:Commonwealth Category:Important events Category:Events